October 2010

10/28/2010

I don't know why it has taken me this long to post pictures of the pre-cuts I received a couple of weeks ago (actually my sister visiting and me and the girls being ill probably had a lot to do with it). I thought you might like to take a look at what to expect in terms of jelly rolls, charm packs and layer cakes......

For me the pre-cuts are a big part of the excitement of designing for Moda. For starters they just look so enticing don't they? I could easily buy these just to decorate the house, not to mention drool over whilst thinking of alllllll the possibilities. Then there is the ease of them, for who wants to spend hours in the company of their rotary cutter chopping up perfectly sized squares and strips? I am definitely in the category of quilters who would prefer not to spend too much time slicing and dicing (partly because I am not in the habit of being great at it - how about you?).

Of course we don't just want to look at these all wrapped up. Sometimes they need to be opened too!

Some of the 42 squares from an opened charm pack.

Some of the 42 strips from an opened up roll of jelliness.

FQ stack!!!! = options, promises, opportunities.......decisions!!!

Some of the fabrics are actually being sewn with and not just stared at ;)

One of the fabrics I am most happy with in this group is the square dot. I've discovered it works brilliantly as a solid with a difference and makes everything look so playful. I also love how it looks like snow!!!! on the blue background - square snow but still snow!!!

Halloween this weekend!!!! Trick or treat??? Definitely all treats around here!!!

Quilt market starts tomorrow too!! Sadly I won't be there but I am feeling very nervous with trepidation and will be keeping my little fingers very well crossed indeed that my pips do themselves proud!!

10/26/2010

Still feeling horribly under par but hugely inspired by the amazing parcel I received yesterday I have been putting my all into making something for my partner in the scrappy hoops swap on flickr. As the scale of the finished item is going to be on the small side ( I think I will go for something that fits into a 7 or 10"ish wide embroidery hoop) I have kept the piecing deliciously small in scale and been playing around with the little details in the prints (sherbet pips of course!).

This is just the start but If you are my partner I hope you are enjoying the way things are looking.......

10/13/2010

I have had a little time to spare in the past couple of weeks, so of course I had to spend it hanging out with my new babies 'The pips'.

When I designed this collection, I had to imagine the way it would all work, co-ordinate or gel (for want of better vocabulary), in my head. But in truth, I didn't really know how it would all look once cut up and sewn. I was really just crossing my fingers and hoping that they would all be friends, balance out each others weaknesses (the way good friends do) and we could all live happily ever after in my little patchwork heaven.

10/06/2010

A little preview of what you can expect from my new line for Moda - 'Sherbet Pips'

You will notice a few familiar faces and something you've never seen from me before - co-ordinates!! Let's take a look.....

So there we have it. A bit of a peek and then some.

All in all, there are nearly 30 prints in this collection. As my girl on a tree swing and scoot prints were so popular earlier this year, I decided that they had to be the starting point for these fabrics. However I wanted them to be completely new versions of the designs, so, I spent a week learning how to use adobe illustrator with the aid of a few online video's. At the end of that week I got the go ahead from Moda to design the group and basically I designed them whilst putting what I'd learned the week before into practise. Frustrating as it was to get to grips with illustrator, I completely enjoyed the whole design part, I used a lot less of the black outline than I did in the earlier versions and added a boy into the scoot print too. As the lead prints are so playful in nature, I wanted to continue this theme into the co-ordinates. So I made square dots instead of the usual round ones, I made them skip and jump around instead of being ordered and all lined up neatly. I also wanted to do a stripe with a twist and came up with the idea of using the stripy scarf from scoot arranged in stripes across the fabric, I LOVE the way that turned out!

Moda have done the best job of turning my designs into yummy fabric, every little detail has been done to perfection, the colours are spot on. I really cannot thank them enough for sharing my vision and completely getting what I was after.

The collection will be premiering at Quilt Market in Houston at the end of the month. Fabric will be shipping to stores in April next year (bit of a wait, I know).

In the meantime, I would love to know what you think? Is it what you expected? Do you think you will be able to create a little space in your stash for some? What can you see yourself making with them?????